Effect of joint Details on Fatigue Properties of a Slot Structure

Effect of the joint details on the stress distribution over a slot structure has been studied in order to improve its fatigue life using a finite element analysis. The joint details of interest are the radius and height of scallop at the stiffener as well as the mis-alignment between the stiffener and longitudinal member. For a slot structure currently used, the stiffener heel is subjected to the maximum stress for a given external load, where is a potential fatigue crack initiation site. The stresses at the stiffener heel and toe decrease both by increasing the scallop radius and more significantly by increasing the mis-alignment while no notable effect of the scallop height on it is appreciated. A proper combination of these factors makes it possible to reduce the stresses at the stiffener heel and In, theoretically, more than 50%. This is attributed to the modification of the stress distribution over the slot structure including the transition of the maximum stressed region from the stiffener heel to the slot surface of the transverse web. Such then results in a g[eat improvement of the fatigue life of the slot structure.